Is Christine Off to Camp?
by GalaxieGurl
Summary: Booth and Brennan's ten year old daughter is eager to go to camp with Michael Vincent, and surprisingly, her mother has some strenuous objections. Where Booth is normally the protective parent, Brennan has some grave misgivings about this camp. What could be her concern?
1. Chapter 1 Can We Go to Camp? PLEASE?

Chapter 1 Is Christine Off to Camp?

 **A/N: I complained a few weeks back that I'd lost my inspiration for what to write. FaithinBones kindly suggested a seasonally-appropriate prompt that Christine is 10 years old and wants to go to camp, and Brennan is opposed to the idea. Here is the result that my brain came up with.**

"Dad!" Christine burst out as she pulled open the car door and fairly jumped into the back seat of his SUV parked outside Jefferson Elementary School. She was bouncing with excitement.

"Whoa, honey, what's got you so worked up?" asked Booth with a grin as he observed his exuberant ten year old daughter.

"Michael is going to an entomology camp in June, and they have a spelunking session I want to go to!" Christine explained breathlessly. "Mrs. Callison said her niece went last summer and had a great time. It's in Ohio near Columbus. When will Mom be home? I wanna tell her all about it!"

"Sounds great to me, as long as you're well supervised exploring the caves; crawling around underground is no place to be if you get lost." Booth replied. "Your mom and I will talk to Hodgins and check it out. I doubt Angela would let Michael go to any camp that wasn't thoroughly vetted by those two."

"Dad, what's vetted? I thought you and Pops and Uncle Jared were vets?" Christine asked, curiously.

"It means checking out something carefully, honey. I know it's an odd use of that word, but it came from veterinarians examining horses before a race. The doctors are called 'vets' for short, and so is the check-up," Booth explained. "Your mom should be home by the time we get there. She's got a huge stack of papers to grade for her grad students tonight, so you'd better catch her before dinner. Once she's in her office, she'll need some peace and quiet to get them done."

He steered the SUV around the corner onto their street and approached their home. Brennan's Prius was already parked in the driveway.

"Mom!" Christine yelled as she burst through the front door, yanking her back pack from her shoulders and hanging it on the Shaker-style coat rack Gibbs had made for Bones last Mother's Day. "Where are you?"

"Honey, stop shouting, please. I'm in the kitchen cutting up your fruit. There's nothing wrong with my hearing, but if you keep up that volume, there might be."

"Uncle Hodgins found a camp for Michael and me! He's going to a session on entomology, and I'm going spelunking! I think exploring caves and stalagmites and stalactites would be fascinating." her daughter exclaimed. "It's in Ohio around Columbus during the third week of June. It's about where the Olintingy Indians lived. Can I go, Mom? Pleease?"

Booth walked into the kitchen behind their enthusiastic child, and gave his wife a kiss on the forehead. He was surprised to see Brennan frown at their daughter before answering.

"The tribe's proper name is _Olentangy,_ honey. Your father and I will need to discuss this, Christine. Please go change into your play clothes, take your snack, and get started on your homework."

"Mom, what's wrong?" Christine asked, disappointed and puzzled by her mother's negative reaction.

After a noticeable silence, Brennan answered. "Nothing, honey. I just need to talk to Hodgins and Angela and obtain more information about who is sponsoring this camp before I agree to let you attend."

"Okay, Mom, but Michael said Uncle Hodgins went to this when he was a kid, so it's not like it just started yesterday…" Christine responded hesitantly, walking slowly out of the kitchen.

Once she had disappeared down the hallway and up the stairs, Booth put an arm around Brennan's shoulders and turned her to face him. "Okay, Bones, what gives? Why the doom and gloom long face? You're usually all hot to trot for Christine to experience some great sciency stuff during her summer vacation, so her brain doesn't turn to pudding."

"Booth, it is physically impossible for a brain to transform itself into pudding. Please, shhhh, come into my office." She took Booth's hand and tugged him across the den into her office and quietly closed the door.

"Bones? Wha-"

"Booth, that camp is located close to Columbus where the Ohio First Savings and Loan is. That's where my parents hid the Delaney documents in the bank lockbox. I don't want Christine anywhere near that area! There might still be people who remember my parents' involvement in that bank heist ring! I don't want to take any chances that they might discover a connection between our daughter and our work or my parents' history with that bank and gang." Brennan shuddered involuntarily. She was pale and her palms began to feel clammy in Booth's grasp.

"Bones, you're having a physical reaction to this caving camp. You're as white as a ghost and all sweaty. What else is bothering you?" Booth stared at his wife with concern.

"Booth, you know there are no such thing as ghosts, but you are correct about my physiological response to the idea of Christine spelunking. I was asked to examine some archaeological remains in a small cave in Spain a few years ago. I found I had great difficulty tolerating the close confines of the cave; I suppose due to my entrapment in the car trunk by my foster parents. By forcing myself to concentrate, I was able to complete the required examination of the skeletons inside the cave, and requested their removal to a nearby coroner's office where I could continue my work and conduct a more thorough evaluation and dating without having to withstand the stress of a tight enclosure. But it was an experience which brought back the nightmares I had of being locked in that trunk years earlier. I hadn't had those horrid dreams in quite some time. I'd awaken drenched in sweat like you do after dreaming of your Iraqi imprisonment. It took me eight months to calm down at night, fall asleep easily, and sleep through the night. Then when Hodgins and I were buried in that car, it happened all over again. I certainly don't wish to communicate my fears and phobias to our daughter. However, while I know it's neither logical nor rational, I'm not sure I can allow Christine to go crawling around in a cave! I find I'm extremely reluctant to let her go. I'd guess that's why Hodgins is steering Michael toward the entomology session. I know he'd attempt to avoid any hint of confinement as much as I would."

Brennan leaned over her desk, taking deep breaths in an effort to calm herself.

"Bones, let's talk to Angela and Hodgins and get more information before we tell Christine no. Maybe the camping association has some other locations that don't give you the heebee jeebee's in a different state that's not near that bank and all your bad memories."

"I agree, Booth, that is a logical approach which might satisfy Christine and avoid my concerns."

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Booth ascended the stairs and knocked on his daughter's bedroom door. "Chrissy, can I come in?"

"Sure, Daddy, what's wrong with Mom?" his daughter asked, looking up from her math book as she lay sprawled across her bed, with papers spread out in front of her.

"Honey, your mom had some bad experiences in Ohio when she was younger. We're going to talk to Angela and Hodgins, and see if there's a similar camp a little closer to home. You know, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky have a lot of caves too, actually more than Ohio, so maybe we can find a camp in one of those states."

Christine rolled her eyes and shrugged her shoulders. "Sure, Dad, I guess we can do that. Michael said his dad had a great time at the place in Ohio, but maybe it's changed since then. It doesn't hurt to check out some other caves that have camps."

"Okay, punkin,' let Mom and I do some nosing around and we'll let you know what we find out."


	2. Chapter 2 Camp Concerns

Chapter 2 Camp Concerns or Hodgins in the Hot Seat

The next morning found Brennan in her office earlier than usual. She had asked Booth to take Christine to school, so she could speak to Dr. Hodgins before the rest of the Jeffersonian staff arrived. The entomologist strode jauntily through the main doors of the lab, which quietly swished closed behind him. He was whistling quietly to himself, and wore an expectant grin as his latest group of _Calliphora_ _vomitoria_ were going to hatch this morning. He had bred these Blue bottle flies, one of the most common predictors of time of death in corpses, especially so that he could observe their first and second instar larval behavior, hoping to sharpen his already acute predictive skills on behalf of their involuntarily-deceased victims.

Seeing Brennan walking toward him, Hodgins greeted her amiably, "'Morning, Dr. B, how was your weekend? Michael is chomping at the bit for school to let out. I bet Christine is too,"

"Jack, I need to talk to you before the rest of the staff arrives."

Hodgins was surprised by Brennan's addressing him by his first name, something she rarely did.

"What's up?"

"The camp you are considering for Michael; how familiar are you with the people in charge of running it?"  
"I know it very well, Dr B; I went there as a kid myself, since my parents and grandparents had been friends with the owners for years. Because of our financial status, my dad was concerned about possible kidnapping plots against me to gain access to his money by thugs demanding ransom in exchange for my safe return. He was very particular where he'd let me go. You think I'm a conspiracy nut, I'm a rank amateur compared to my father and grandfather, who was also alive until I was in grad school. They were sure people were after our money. That's why I just always kept it a secret. Their worry about its security made my childhood rather difficult at times. I hated their hang-ups."

"At least you always had people who worried about you," Brennan remarked wryly.

"What did you need to discuss that requires privacy, Dr. B?"

"Michael apparently told Christine about the Ohio entomology camp you want him to go to, and she wants to go to their spelunking session. I'm very concerned about that for two reasons. It's in the area where my parents operated in that bank heist gang, and our confinement in that car buried by the Gravedigger makes me reluctant to allow Christine to go crawling around caves. I find that considering that prospect brings back all my anxiety about our experience underground. I know it's not rational, but it makes me extremely agitated. I also need more information about this camp's security to evaluate whether Christine would be at risk from those thugs who were tracking my dad, Russ and me."

"Hey, hey, Dr. B, I know the kids want to go to camp together; if you're concerned about the one in Ohio, there are plenty of others in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Kentucky that we can check out for them. There are caves and insects throughout the Appalachian region. There's nothing sacred about the camp I went to if you prefer a different location."

"Well, I don't want to ruin your plans for Michael, Christine thought he was excited about going to the same place you'd experienced as a boy," Brennan said.

"Hey, no big deal, Dr. B, Michael is just as happy observing one species of spider as another, and they are plenty of cave spiders to examine. We can reserve the Ohio camp until we get the case involving your parents' bank gang connections solved, and all those criminals behind bars and then re-evaluate it for the kids," Hodgins assured her.

"That makes me feel better, Jack; thank you, I appreciate your understanding," Brennan said quietly.

"You know Angie and I worry about Michael too. Ever since Pelant left that skinned corpse hanging from the canopy of our bed and those ghastly flower petals strewn in Michael's crib, I can't be too protective of our son, even if it drives him crazy when he gets older. Let me check out some other camps and send you some information to look at," Hodgins replied.

"Maybe you should bring Booth and me printed brochures rather than emailing me websites. I don't think we can be too careful where our kids are concerned. Who knows who's snooping around the internet? Also, you might investigate annual statistics regarding the fecal coliform bacteria levels in lakes around the camps we're considering," Brennan suggested.

"You got it, Dr. B! Now I need to go check on my _Calliphora_ _vomitoria_ larvae, if you don't mind. I'll do some research on the camps this evening and let you know what I find."


	3. Chapter 3 Cautious Camp Considerations

Chapter 3

Michael Vincent sat on the edge of the vinyl seat, impatiently bouncing up and down a bit while watching out the window as the school bus slowed to a stop at his friend's corner. After much discussion among their parents, finally this semester, he and Christine were allowed to ride the school bus in the mornings. One of the adults still came from the Jeffersonian to pick them up after school, and they spent the afternoon in the lab's Young Scientist after school program , or doing homework together in Angela's office. They had been required to spend a few boring afternoons at the Jeffersonian day care center, playing with the little kids, when all of their folks were out of the lab for an investigation, but thankfully, those times had been infrequent. Both children considered themselves too old for day care, despite what their parents might think!

He craned his neck to see Christine board the bus, and waved to catch her attention. He was nearly always able to save her a seat next to him, and grinned expectantly as she hurried down the aisle toward him. "What did your mom say about camp?" he asked.

Christine's smile faded. "She is concerned about my safety and the caves. My dad said she had some bad experiences when she was younger in a cave or something, and she wants us closer to home than Ohio. My Grandpa Max used to live there. All I know is they want to check out some other camps. You know how my mom is, nothing is ever easy, she always has to check out every angle before she decides anything. Daddy says she does it because she cares about me and him so much, but sometimes I wish she could just let me go for it!"

"Well, if going to a different camp is what it takes for them to let us go together, then we'll just find another one," Michael said generously. "Spending the summer with you will be great fun, it doesn't matter where we are, does it?"

Christine smiled at her best friend. "You're right about that, Michael."

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Brennan leaned into Angela's office and spoke softly to her friend, "Do you have a moment, Angela?"

"Sure, sweetie, whatcha' need?" the artist asked, turning in her chair to look at Brennan, whom she noted looked very tired and wan for this early in the morning.

"It's this camp idea the kids came up with. Michael Vincent's insect sessions will be fascinating, I'm sure, but Christine wants to sign up for the spelunking and cave exploration segment of the camp, and I'm concerned about her safety. I do want her to have a good time, but she is so daring, who knows how far she'd venture into a cave passage, and I worry she'll get separated from the guides and wedged in a tight spot. I dreamed that happened and the thought kept me awake for several hours last night. I know Booth thinks I'm overreacting, but Hodgins understands about my fear of confinement. I CAN'T tell Christine about my foster experiences or the Gravedigger's crimes! But it makes my intestines clinch up at the thought of her prowling through a cramped cave! And the idea of the two of them being in the area of Ohio where my parents' bank heist gang operated is even more appalling. Hodgins said there are camps in Pennsylvania, but as you know, that's where my mother's body was found buried, and in West Virginia, but that's where Hugh Kennedy and Melvin Gallagher operated and they tortured Booth with a red-hot screwdriver. So how are our kids supposed to be safe in those places either?odHo" Brennan fretted.

"Sweetie, Jack found a three-week residential camp in Washington County at Howell Caves near Hagerstown and Antietam National Battlefield, sponsored by the Naval Academy, which offers excellent security and a variety of overnight excursions to various natural and wildlife locations in Maryland and Virginia. It is attended by military officers' and diplomats' children whose safety is harder to insure than for more anonymous children, so it seems perfect for our kids. They employ off-duty Navy SEALS as counselors for the small groups they take on these trips. The guys are low-key but well-trained to handle protecting their campers, if a threatening situation arises. They don't call attention to their extra scrutiny of the kids' surroundings, and relate well to children eager for adventure," Angela explained.

"Ange, you sound like a travel brochure, but the extra precautions taken by this camp do sound thorough and acceptable. Do they offer any opportunity to visit the camp or meet with the staff before we reserve a spot?" Brennan asked. "If I let Christine go somewhere we haven't checked out, Max is likely to show up unannounced and become an unofficial camp observer, and that would embarrass Christine greatly." the scientist remarked wryly. "My dad's precautions for Christine's safety would make me appear careless."

"I'll let Jack know you and Booth are interested in joining us for a tour," Angela offered.

"That sounds fine. I suspect we need to do it before the kids get impatient and make their own arrangements for summer camp!" Brennan remarked.

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The next morning, Christine literally bounced down the aisle of the school bus. "Michael, my mom says your dad found a camp she likes. They're gonna go check it out this weekend!"

"That sounds more like it, huh? This is gonna be a great summer, Chrissy!" Michael exclaimed happily. "What are you writing your science report about for next week?"


	4. Chapter 4 Decisions, Decisions

Chapter 4 Decisions, Decisions

Over the next week, Brennan spent what free time she had researching the Naval Academy-sponsored summer camp Jack Hodgins had suggested. She decided she felt comfortable with his recommendation and felt it deserved further consideration. She knew that Angela and Hodgins would never send their son to any camp without carefully checking it out; and even wondered if Hodgins would somehow arrange surreptitious personal security for Michael Vincent, knowing how paranoid the entomologist could be at times. That night after dinner, she sought out Booth and found him watching a previously recorded Flyers hockey match in his man-cave. She walked up behind his comfortable recliner and dropped a file folder into his lap. "This Naval Academy camp offers excellent programs which match both Michael's and Christine's interests; and Hodgins has assured me that it is safe. Do you think we need to visit their facility or are you comfortable deciding based upon their promotional information? I thought we could invite Ange and Jack over Friday evening to discuss it. I think a June session would offer the most comfortable weather. Since this camp is reputable and popular, we need to reserve their spots before the sessions fill up. "

"Bones, I'm already sold on it. Cullen's three nephews have gone there for several summers, and he also assured me that it is secure and well-supervised, just as Hodgins told you. In fact, they rotate midshipmen from the Academy each week as camp counselors to give the cadets a change of pace. The Secret Service recruits some of the Academy graduates and has developed a joint training program with the Navy to give interested cadets a real-time exercise in undercover surveillance and human asset protection. Obviously, not all the cadets eventually sign up for the Secret Service, but the training is useful and effective in other areas of naval operations. They're not supposed to let the kids know anything about their real role at the camp; just interact with them as normal counselors would," Booth told her.

"The Naval Academy has superb engineering and science curricula to prepare their officers, so the camp STEM enrichment programs are exceptional as well," Brennan remarked.

"Boy, Bones, you've really checked this out. Not sure I want Christine to end up a Yankee White agent but the camp sounds top-notch to me. I think Chrissy will enjoy it. She always has a good time when we go camping in the Shenandoahs near our property out there."

"Booth, she's only ten years old; she's not going to choose her life's work based on one summer camp experience. You're over-thinking this," Brennan chided him.

"Oh, look who's talking, Miss Super-Analytic Squinty Scientist!" Booth shot back.

"So what weeks should we propose to Hodgins and Angela?" Brennan asked. "Is your grandfather still planning to come for Father's Day?"

"Nope, I told him we'd come get him at the retirement center and take him fishing at our camp property. The pond at Willow River is pretty tame for Pops. He claims he's caught every fish in there so often they're on a first-name basis. He loves being outdoors and fishing in a mountain stream. He took me fishing lots of times, and I even remember getting to fish with both Pops and my dad a few times when he was sober. You know, for all the horrible crimes Jacob Broadsky committed, he did know how to evaluate land. That ten acres he bought in my name has turned out to be an wonderful place to relax on the weekends, not to mention an excellent investment property with the road improvements the county is making out there."

"As you said, June is cooler and less muggy than later in the summer. I think the first camp session would be best for the kids. We can take Christine up to Willow River to see Pops for a belated Father's Day treat when she gets back home, don't you think? It'll give him something to look forward to," Booth mused out loud.

Brennan arranged for the Hodgins to come for dinner and bring Michael along to enjoy her macaroni and cheese and video games with Christine. After a brief discussion of scheduling over glasses of wine and beer, the couples informed the two youngsters that they were going to camp. They were rewarded with exuberant hugs and excited shouts. Later that night, Brennan snuggled into bed , her back curled against Booth's solid pectoral and abdominal musculature, satisfied that their daughter could enjoy a camp session without her developing a gastric ulcer from worry about security.

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The remaining two weeks of school seemed interminable for Michael Vincent and Christine. They went on a year-end class field trip to the National Zoological Park, followed by a picnic on the museum grounds nearby. This was one of the few features of the Smithsonian Institution which the Jeffersonian lacked, an aspect of her beloved workplace which many of her co-workers assumed would irritate Dr. Temperance Brennan. However, it was her deeply-held personal belief that animals should not be confined in cages for entertainment purposes, and she also knew that the other venerable museum did not have a medico-legal lab, since no entity of scholarly endeavor can address every field of study. She knew that the Smithsonian conducted extensive and valuable global animal research so she didn't broadcast her disdain for its zoo, but given the choice between human bone identification and exotic animal husbandry, the Jeffersonian would always claim her allegiance.

Michael Vincent's father was well-known at the school for his entertaining science enrichment sessions. He had boosted the popularity of the Jeffersonian's after school science program as well. So it was not surprising that Jack Hodgins was frequently recruited to act as a chaperone. He accompanied his son's class to the National Zoo on this field trip. He patiently answered dozens of questions from the students about its inhabitants, particularly the snakes, insects, and spiders. He knew that Michael would get to observe larval development and practice specimen collection techniques at the camp. He found himself wishing he could go to camp too, just to revel in studying instar stages without analyzing time of death as his work at the lab required.

"Uncle Hodgins, thanks for convincing my mom to let me go to camp with Michael! " Christine said as they walked through the herpetarium. "This is going to be a great summer; I can't wait to explore the caves."

"Christine, I was glad to reassure your mom. She is right to be careful where you spend time away from home. You just have to promise me you'll heed your counselors regarding safety procedures, and you too, Michael, or your moms will both have my head if anything goes wrong! Not to mention Booth!" Hodgins told them seriously.

"We will, we will!" the pair assured him. "We're so excited; it's gonna be great!"

 **A/N: So Brennan's worries are assuaged and it's off to camp for Christine with Michael Vincent. Now I'm mulling what experiences to give the kids...angsty or routine? Any suggestions?**


	5. Chapter Off They Go!

Chapter 5

Christine lifted her new black North Face duffel bag onto her bed, leaned over, pressed her torso across it to compress it as much as possible, tugged on the turquoise compression straps and zipped the last zipper. It was filled with all the items she would need for camp; some of which she considered superfluous but she knew better than to object to their inclusion in her supplies. If she didn't take and use bug spray sunscreen religiously, her mother would rescind the hard-won approval she had granted for the trip. Her father had presented her with a Petzl headlamp in turquoise (her current favorite) along and a silver multi-tool with numerous fascinating attachments. He'd explained and demonstrated in detail the various features of both implements, after which she'd had to practice using them until he was satisfied with her familiarity with and understanding of both. Her impatience with this drill had earned her a lecture from him about being prepared for emergencies. Her mother had added a lengthy commentary about the value of self-reliance, and a muttered reference to her own life having once been saved by such knowledge. Her parents had shared a long look at each other which Christine didn't understand, but she caught the serious nature of their concerns.

As she exited her room with the duffle over one arm, her father came down the hallway and took it from her. "You'll be lugging this thing around soon enough, let me take it to the car for you, honey," he smiled.

"Thanks, Dad!" she grinned at him. "I've got everything I need and then some! I can't wait to get there!"

Her mother met them at the bottom of the stairway. "I put some stamped postcards in your bag, Christine. Please write one and send it every few days. They will let us read of your experiences and give you a nice memento of your summer adventures," Brennan assured her.

"Okay, Mom, I will! Can we go now? Please? I'll remember everything you both told me, I'll be extra careful, and I'll-"

"Christine, honey, you forgot the most important thing," Brennan cautioned her.

"Oh, Mom, you've told me everything I need to do; what else could there be?"

"Have fun!" her mother exclaimed.

"That I can do!" Christine responded happily.

An hour later, they pulled off the highway into Hagerstown and soon found the Kenneth Weaver Geological Park Visitors Center. Its parking lot was filled with cars, parents, campers, and gear stuffed into brightly colored backpacks or duffle bags. Christine spotted Michael Vincent, Angela, and Jack Hodgins and their mini-Cooper. Michael yelled at Christine in excitement. A yellow school bus was waiting to carry campers and luggage to their first campground. A man wearing a Navy ball cap spoke into a bullhorn. "Folks, I'm Navy Captain John Sowell. I'm in charge of the Naval Academy Summer Science Discovery Program. We're going to take your youngsters to several different campsites throughout the next two weeks, to visit various protected natural resource areas. We've obtained special permission to conduct this camp session within strict guidelines to protect the places they'll see. We have to restrict visitor access to preserve these sites, so tell your kids goodbye and let's get their adventures underway. We'll meet you back here Sunday after next when camp is concluded. These young people are fortunate to have the chance to study the natural resources of their state, so we hope you understand our arrangements to keep them pristine for years to come."

"Okay, guys, have a good time, be careful, and watch out for each other," Booth said, hugging his daughter. Brennan and Angela followed suit, kissing their kids despite squirming disapproval. Jack squeezed Michael's shoulder and said, "Son, hope you and Christine have a great experience; just use common sense and keep your eyes open to what's going on around you."

Shouldering their backpacks, Michael and Christine took them to the bus luggage bins, whose doors were open wide to receive their gear. Then they climbed aboard the bus, found seats, and hung out of the windows, waving at their parents with high-spirited grins.

"Bye, see you soon! "

"Finish writing your book, Mom!"

"Don't worry, we'll be fine!"

Finally, all the campers and luggage were on the bus, goodbyes were said, and the driver closed the doors and revved his engine a bit to pull away out of the parking lot and trundle down a graveled road.

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"What do you say we go find a restaurant in Hagerstown and have some dinner together?" Booth suggested.

"Sounds good to me, follow me to Angie's favorite gourmet restaurant. It's run by a college friend of the Carlie's Kitchen owner," Jack Hodgins offered.

"Bren, you'll love their macaroni and cheese sampler plate. Booth, you'll probably be able to eat two orders, it's so scrumptious!" Angela promised. "See you there!"

As they followed the mini-Cooper down the street, Brennan muttered, "It's gonna be a long two weeks, Booth."

"Don't you know it!" her husband agreed.


	6. Chapter 6 We're Here!

Chapter 6 We're Here!

At Camp

Michael and Christine were disappointed to find that their bunk assignments were not together; even though they understood the logistics of boys and girls being separated. Having been best friends since babyhood, they could always hope, right? They agreed to meet back at the dining hall after depositing their backpacks in their respective tents, which only took a few minutes since their counselors had told them not to unpack all their clothes and belongings. The camp director had given them an introductory pep talk after they got off the bus. "You're attending a science exploration camp and researchers frequently need to react quickly to changing situations during expeditions, so get used to keeping your gear ready to grab and go at a moment's notice. Practicing this skill could save your life someday. If you're on an archaeological dig and a nearby volcano suddenly threatens to erupt, or if an unfriendly native tribe takes a negative view of your research project, or a Pacific rim tsunami or earthquake strikes, being able to react quickly to a fluid situation is a vital skill to cultivate. Learn to pack light and move quickly. Not all of you will end up in the military or government service, but we will be teaching you skills and imparting knowledge that you can utilize if you do join these fields. The mindset you learn here will serve you in high school, in college and throughout your lives. Granted, you guys are 10 to 12 years old, but you're smart kids and we're going to treat you in a grown-up manner, since it's never too early to learn practical skills."

"This is gonna be wicked intense, Christine," Michael Vincent remarked when they met up again.

"Mom and Dad would say that you sound like Uncle Sweets, Michael,"

"I know; I love that word 'wicked' that he always used. I miss him a lot."

"I used to could hear him talking in my head when I was younger, but I've forgotten how his voice sounded," Christine said sadly. "I miss him too. I remember how he looked, 'cause little Seeley looks just like him, but babies don't sound like their parents."

"Hey, Chris, let's go check the bulletin board to see what time our science sessions start in the morning," Michael said suddenly, trying to distract his friend from her sad recollections. "I'll race you there!"

"You won't beat me, Michael Hodgins!" Christine declared. And he didn't.

"I have a classroom session this afternoon and tomorrow morning from 8 to noon, it says. Yuck, we just got out of school, I don't really want to sit at a desk again." Christine sighed.

"Maybe they have to show you how to use the caving equipment. Sometimes spelunking is crawling but it can also involve using ropes and carabiners, I read," M ichael suggested. "It looks like you have a field trip in the afternoon. I have to learn lab safety procedures before I'm allowed to observe or handle any of the insects, Dad told me. So we're in the same boat, I guess."

"We don't have much free time until Thursday afternoon. Maybe we can ask them to pack us a sack lunch and go exploring together. By that time, we'll have a lot to tell each other. I think we should try to eat meals together, if our sessions finish at the same time, don't you?" asked Christine.

"Sure, Chris, I wanna spend as much time with you as we can. They do have swimming at 4 pm and show movie after dinner, so we can see each other then. It's time for the first classroom period, so I'll see you back here for supper, okay?"

"You got it, Michael, have fun with your bugs."

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Christine soon discovered that the spelunking procedures class was nothing like she expected. There were no desks in the room listed on her schedule. Each camper was assigned a numbered set of equipment near which was a camp stool on which to sit. She learned how to wear the safety harness, protective helmet, gloves, and lycra sleeves over her knees and elbows.

"These sleeves are to protect you from scrapes and scratches. Professional spelunkers don't use them, but we don't want you guys distracted by trying to keep bandaids on. You're going to get some bumps and bruises, but these will help. Take care of your equipment; at the end of the session your parents will have the option to purchase it if they wish, but if not, you must return it in good condition. If anything is lost, there will be a replacement fee."

Meanwhile, Michael Vincent was learning to handle petri dishes, test tubes, specimen jars, and other insect gathering tools. He had, of course, seen his father using these, and Hodgins had taught his son proper scientific technique and lab procedures, but doing it in front of strangers made Michael nervous, and he felt clumsy for the first time in his life. He had to concentrate hard to remember all the details the entomology counselors discussed with the campers.

By dinnertime, both kids were far more tired than they'd ever expected to be. "This is more work than soccer practice or volleyball workouts," Christine observed between mouthfuls of lasagna.

"My brain is so tired, I feel like I just tried to memorize the entire Encyclopedia Brittanica website!" Michael groaned over his turkey cacciatore. "I gotta say, the food here is really good, and I'm so hungry I could eat everything in sight."

After the campers and counselors finished eating, and washed up their dishes, they returned to the long tables and played games of chess, checkers or Scrabble for an hour and competed in a few rounds of "Sparkle" the math quiz game they remembered from third and fourth grade, but still enjoyed before being dismissed for the night.

After supper, the two pre-teens walked back to their tents, unrolled their sleeping bags, and were soundly asleep by 9 pm.

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Back in D.C.

Booth performed his nightly security sweep of the house, checking all the door and window locks, and set the alarm system for its overnight operation. He ascended the stairs and walked down the hall, pausing at the doorway to Christine's room. Its empty silence saddened him a little, but he knew their daughter would benefit in many ways from attending this camp sessions, and missing her came with being a parent. He continued down the hall, and walked into the master bedroom. Brennan was propped up in bed, against the headboard and several pillows, a scientific journal in her lap. She was staring off in space.

"Bones, you okay?"

"No, Booth, I'm not; I miss our daughter, and we only dropped her off this afternoon. How am I going to get through the next two weeks?" Brennan whined. "When she stays with Max or Angela, I know I can see her the next day. This camp is much too long, and too far away! What if she needs us?"

"How very mature of you, Bones, you sound like Parker used to when I told him he'd had enough chocolate ice cream or video games," Booth teased his wife. "We'll get through it just like we did Parker having the measles, or Chrissy's ear infections when she was small. As Pops used to say 'This too shall pass,'" he soothed her. "Roll over and I'll rub your back."

A short time later, after his tender ministrations and other distractions, Brennan drifted into a fitful sleep in Booth's arms.


	7. Chapter 7 Camp Continues

Chapter 7 Camp Continues

At Camp

Christine spent the next morning acquiring and practicing caving skills. She shimmied through cramped tunnels, climbed a 3 foot wall enclosed in a cave-like space, worked her way down an 8 foot wall with a partner, and learned to wriggle, twist, and hold her breath for a few moments to get through tight spaces. By lunchtime, she sported several bumps, knots, bruises and sore muscles on her arms, legs, and torso, and a small goose-egg on her forehead from a low-hanging rock.

Meanwhile Michael Vincent learned the difference between larvae and first stage instar pupae, gathered some meal worm eggs and their wriggling parents into specimen jars, and coaxed a non-poisonous spider onto a twig he held down into a fish tank. He handled a garter snake and a grass snake, and spread some fly eggs across a petri dish coated in a nutrient agar base. He'd seen his father do all these things at the Jeffersonian, but the procedures were much harder to complete on his own, especially while wearing latex gloves which were slightly too big for him. Twice he nearly dropped a petri dish lid trying to cover his specimen. "I realize these gloves don't fit you guys perfectly, but you have to learn to adapt to field conditions, and sometimes the correct size gloves aren't available and you have to use what you have," the entomology counselor told him and the other campers.

Nonetheless, both kids were full of excitement when they reunited for lunch and spent the time interrupting one another telling of their experiences between bites of ham sandwiches, fruit, and milk.

After lunch, Christine and the other caving campers were told to retrieve their day packs from their tents and meet the counselor back at the dining hall at 1 pm. She ran to her tent, opened her duffle, and pulled out the army green day pack with glow in the dark patches which her parents had helped her outfit and pack. She checked inside to make sure she had her headlamp, multi-tool, first aid kit, compass, a simple flash camera, and two water bottles. Satisfied that all was in order, she zipped her duffle shut and stowed it under her cot.

The counselor led them on a half-mile hike to the entrance to a small cave. "This isn't a large cave, but you are beginners and it will challenge your current skill level. There are short stalactites and stalagmites; not as impressive as you may have hoped for, but you can study and examine these close up. Just be sure you don't touch them."

Paired with a boy from Kentucky, Christine spent the next two hours crawling, reaching, climbing, sliding, and scrutinizing the mineral formations the counselor had pointed out. She filled in a page of her notebook with her observations and measurement estimates. After they exited the cave, the group sat down on rocks outside and discussed what they had seen, observed, and experienced. The counselor noted that Christine's estimated measurements were fairly close to the actual height and length of the mineral formations she'd examined. "You have a good eye for details and estimation; good start," she praised Christine. The counselor mentioned accomplishments of the other campers to build their confidence and the group was in a good mood on the hike back to the dining hall as the sun began to paint the sky with colors.

Michael had correctly identified three species of beetles that inhabit the forests of Appalachia. He successfully mascerated mealworms without breaking his test tube, and injected saline solution into an orange. His afternoon had included peering at slides of insect wings through a microscope, and he found it fascinating.

Once again, their suppertime was spent regaling each other with stories of their day's activities. Christine showed Michael some pictures on her phone that she had taken of the stalactites and stalagmites. He was fascinated with them. "I wonder what causes that scaly-looking texture on that stalactite right there," Michael mused.

"I couldn't tell you; the counselors didn't discuss their mineral content with us," Christine responded. "I'm sure my mom or your dad could tell us in a minute."

Competitive games of Trivial Pursuit filled the time after dinner, and the pair soon bid each other goodnight and drifted off to sleep immediately, worn out from their day's activities.

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Thursday afternoon arrived before they knew it. Given the choice between swimming, hiking, and rock wall climbing during their free time, Christine and Michael decided to take a hike together. After informing their counselors, they were told to return within an hour and a half.

The pair set off. Michael wanted to go to the cave. He was still fascinated with the pictures she had taken of the stalagmites and stalactites.

Christine hesitated. "I don't know, Michael, it's a good half-mile walk to get there."

"Oh, come on, Chris, please?I wonder what causes that scaly-looking texture on that stalactite right there," Michael mused.

"Well, you can look at it all you want, but you're not allowed to touch it," Christine warned him. "The counselor said that the oil in human skin can damage the mineral deposits and stop them from growing. Do you have a headlamp, Michael? I don't have an extra one to loan you. "

"Yeah, Chris, my dad bought me one to use when I go to the latrine at night. He also put a small emergency beacon/transmitter in my daypack in case I get lost or injured. You know how he loves to cook up conspiracies to talk about; well he convinced Mom that I might fall and knock myself out, so he added the transmitter. It turns on automatically if my day pack strikes the ground. Overkill on being prepared, if you ask me, but they didn't; so here it is."

The two friends shouldered their day packs and started off toward the cave. "We can't go into the actual cave; I haven't had enough experience to show you how to do that, but there are a few stalactites and stalagmites just inside the entrance that you can look at," Christine cautioned Michael Vincent. Within twenty minutes, the pair had reached the cave. They donned their headlamps, flipped them on, and crouched to enter the cave.

"Stop inside the entrance, Michael," Christine reminded her friend.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," he responded. "Here we go!"

Once they'd crept the five feet into the cave's entrance, the pair were able to straighten and stand upright. "I see the stalactites! There's a scaly one. I think that may be calcite. It's the right color," Michael exclaimed. Suddenly, Christine yelped with pain, lurched forward, and fell hard, striking her temple on a rock which protruded from the floor.

"Michael, I've twisted my ankle; the strap of my Chaco is caught in a crevice in the rock. Ohhh, that hurts!"

"Lie still, Christine, let me look at your foot. It seems to be turned at the wrong angle, and you've got a nasty cut on your forehead."

"Michael, I can't free my foot! What are we going to do?" Christine attempted to wrench her foot loose several times, but the sandal strap was wedged tightly.

"Let me try to cut it; we are gonna be in so much trouble if we don't get back on time," Michael worried aloud. "This is my fault, I shouldn't have tried to convince you to show me the cave."

"I don't want to cut the strap on my Chaco's; I just got them for camp and they cost $85. My dad will freak if I ruin them!" Christine objected.

"Chrissy, I can afford to buy you a new pair if I need to. It'll be much worse if we don't show up when the counselors told us to. They'll probably send us home early, and then we'll both really be in trouble with our parents. Your mom will never let you go anywhere again. If I cut the strap right next to the rock, it won't be that much shorter and you can still wear them. Your dad and mom will never notice anything."

"Yeah, right,' Christine wailed. "Did you forget I live with Super Detective Agent Man and the Bone Lady? They both notice EVERYTHING!"

"Yes, you're right about that. Maybe you'll get lucky and they'll think it tore at camp. Gosh, I forgot I left my pocket knife at home," Michael realized.

"Look in my pack, Dad gave me a multi-tool thingy that has all sorts of doo-dads and gadgets. There's a jack knife and a scissors on it." Christine urged him. "Ohhh, my head is starting to hurt!"

Michael carefully slipped the straps of Christine's day pack off her shoulders and loosened them to open the top and look inside. He located the multi-tool.

"Here, hand it to me, Dad showed me how to open it so I don't cut myself. It's a little hard to do if you've never done it," she told him. Christine pulled out the knife, opened the blade and handed it back to Michael. "Don't cut yourself!" she urged him.

Michael cut the strap as close as he could to the rock. He helped Christine to straighten her foot, and wrapped her ankle with the Ace bandage Angela had insisted he put in his day pack. Then he helped her stand, and replaced both their packs on their shoulders.

Carefully supporting Christine, he helped her walk slowly out of the cave, and they started back. The hike back took nearly an hour, since she could only limp and each step was painful.

Reaching the clearing at the edge of camp, Michael helped Christine sit down, and went to find her counselor. They returned and helped Christine to the nurse's office. The motherly lady complimented Michael's wrapping job, and gave Christine some Advil for her headache and the pain in her ankle.

"If it still hurts in the morning, I will take an xray of your foot, Missy. In the meantime, you're going to spend tonight here in the infirmary with your foot elevated and ice packs around it to stop the swelling."

"Can I bring Christine some dinner and play chess with her afterwards?" Michael asked.

"No, honey, the staff will bring her dinner, and if you want to eat here, they can bring yours here also. You can play chess as long as she keeps that foot elevated. Just be sure your counselor knows where you are, and get back to your tent by bed check," the nurse responded kindly.

"I won't be able to do any more cave exploring with my foot hurt like this," Christine wailed later as the pair ate their dinner.

"Maybe it's not sprained too badly, Chrissy. Let's hope for the best!" Michael encouraged her.

After several chess matches, he told her goodnight, patted her hand, and went back to his tent in a despondent mood. "I got my best friend hurt, what kind of a friend am I?" he thought as he laid on his back staring at the tent roof after lights out.

 **A/N: FaithinBones suggested this prompt in the first place. A reviewer Mstgszy suggested having the kids get into a fix, and get themselves out of if, so their parents are none the wiser, until someone lets their secret slip and they have to explain what happened to their parents. Thanks to both of you; I hope this story fulfills your expectations.**


	8. Chapter 8 What Parents Don't Know

Chapter 8 Let's Hope What the Parents Don't Know About They Never Will

At Camp

Michael Vincent Hodgins awoke with the first rays of sunlight shining in his eyes. Remorseful after Christine's mishap, he spent a restless night with fragmented dreams of seeing his best friend get hurt but finding himself unable to reach and rescue her. He shook his head, rubbed his gritty eyes, and sat up on the side of his cot. He grabbed a t-shirt and shorts, pulled them on, slid his feet into his Chacos and started to leave the tent. His counselor's hushed question stopped him. "Hey, bud, where are you going so early?"  
"I need to go see how Christine is doing," the boy explained.

"It's a bit early for that; only 6 am. Infirmary's not open yet, Michael. Lie back down and get some rest. Sorry, but I need you to stay here til breakfast. If you can't sleep, you may use your headlamp and read or play silent games on your phone but please stay here. The medic will take good care of your friend. You might be surprised, when you're young, muscles and ligaments can heal pretty quickly. "

"How do you know that?" Michael asked.

"Oh, we get pretty thorough first aid training as part of becoming a counselor here," the counselor replied quietly. He didn't tell Michael that he was a first class midshipmen, heading into his final year at Annapolis.

Christine was still asleep thanks to the pain medicine the camp nurse had given her at bedtime. When nature called, she hobbled to the adjacent bathroom on crutches. The medic on overnight duty had refilled her Polar Care machine with ice, rewrapped its' pad around her ankle, and settled her back into bed. Her ankle was wrapped in a bandage which prevented skin damage from the ice, thus allowing extended use of the cold therapy.

Once he'd impatiently finished his breakfast and tidied his tent, Michael walked to the infirmary and sat down on its front steps to wait til it opened. The nurse arrived 10 minutes later, and he followed her into the clinic. "How's our patient this morning?" she asked the medic for Michael's benefit.

"She slept well, m'am. I haven't unwrapped her ankle but that Polar Care machine did the trick when I hurt my elbow during spring break maneuvers."

Michael wondered what spring break maneuvers were, but he was anxious to see Christine and didn't want to delay their reunion with questions. The nurse and the medic disappeared down the short hallway and he could hear Christine answering their questions as they checked her ankle.

"Good morning, Christine. How did you sleep?" the nurse asked as she checked the injured area. "Move your foot very slightly for me, and see how that feels."

"It still hurts, but not near as much. I slept pretty well, but my head feels like wood."

"Those pain pills might make you a bit dopey today, but they reduce swelling and help you sleep. We won't give you any more of them. Today you can take some Advil."

"My dad gets really funny when he has to take pain medicine. He acts really silly," Christine remarked.

"Yes, your chart indicated your parents are both sensitive to pain medications. We gave you a very small dose. It doesn't look like your ankle sprain is serious. I want you to keep weight off of it for today, and then you can resume normal activity gradually tomorrow. You've got an early visitor already this morning, Christine. Do you want some company while you eat your breakfast?" the nurse said.

"Sure, if it's allowed."

"You may come in now and see your friend, young man," the nurse smiled at Michael as she exited Christine's room.

Michael walked down the hall and peeked in. Christine was sitting up in bed, a tray in her lap, eating oatmeal. There were three other twin beds in the room, with various pieces of medical equipment, a wheelchair, several sets of crutches, and a walker arranged along one wall. A camp stool had been placed beside Christine's bed, and she waved him over.

"Hi, Michael, you want one of my granola bars?"

"No, Chrissy, I tried to eat breakfast but I didn't get very far. Been worried about you."

"Here, Michael, take half. I'm feeling a lot better. The medic James took good care of me all night. My ankle is sore, but not near as much as I thought it'd be. But I can't climb or crawl today. You think they'd let me go with you to your bug sessions?"

Michael grinned at that thought, and reached for the granola bar, taking a big bite. "Yeah, I bet they would; that would be fun to show you what I'm doing. But I promise to not let you get hurt. None of the bugs are poisonous."

"They're still kinda icky, Michael, but I think I'd like to see your insects. Just don't let them crawl on me!" Christine exclaimed, making a face at her friend.

The nurse re-entered the room. "Christine, I think you are fine to continue your session at camp with us. However, if you wish us to contact your parents to come pick you up early, we can do that for you as well. I don't believe it's necessary, but it is an option if that is what you prefer-"

"Oh, no, PLEASE don't call them. I will be fine. I've wanted to come to camp for so long, I don't want to go home early at all! I'll take it easy and be careful not to hurt my ankle again, I promise!" Christine exclaimed.

"Honey, that's fine. I just wanted you to know you have the choice to go home if you wanted to," the nurse reassured her.

"Actually, since this camp is sponsored by the US Naval Academy, they admire determination in our campers, Christine," the medic grinned at her. "If you want to consider Annapolis when it's time for college, that's exactly the spirit they look for in their cadets! You should keep it in mind for your future."

"Okay, James, she doesn't have to enlist today! Missy, when you've finished eating, I'll help you dress. I want you to stay on those crutches for today, and come back here after your lunch and let me check how your ankle is doing. Until then, don't put any weight on it whatsoever, you hear?" the nurse instructed Christine.

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By lunchtime, Michael had managed to gross Christine out several times with his worms and larvae, but they laughed and talked as he followed the counselor's instructions for the day. The kids had seen several pupae break out of their cases, which delighted Michael more than Christine.

"Well, it's interesting, but I still prefer the rocks and caves, Michael. It is so much cooler inside the caves even in the middle of summer. Hot and muggy outside, yet a perfect temperature inside a cave," Christine remarked as she walked carefully to lunch.

"At this rate, Chris, there won't be any food left for us by the time we reach the dining hall," Michael teased. "Thank goodness you talked the nurse out of calling your parents. I hope your ankle's all better soon and they don't have to find out about what happened."

"You want me to trip and fall again? My parents will make you pay the medical bills if I break my leg and need a cast, Michael Vincent Montenegro-Hodgins!" Christine declared hotly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you. I was just teasing you. Thank goodness you talked the nurse out of calling your parents, Chris. I hope your ankle's all better soon and they don't have to find out about what happened."

"Yup, that would be best all the way around. I hope we can just keep it between ourselves," Christine agreed.

After lunch, the nurse cleared Christine to begin putting slight weight on her ankle, and instructed her to return for another check that evening and the next morning.

By the next day, she was able to return to her spelunking sessions, though she had to keep the ankle wrapped as a precaution over the weekend.

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Back in D.C.

Angela and Hodgins had returned the invitation, having Booth and Brennan over Wednesday evening for a dinner of steaks and tofu burgers, fresh strawberries off their property, and the delicious pie that Hodgins' chef prepared. Booth declared that he hadn't eaten pie that good since his Gran's, and made Helena, the cook, promise to teach Bones how to bake it before Thanksgiving.

"Sure seems like a long week without the kids here, Bren, don't you think?" Angela asked her friend.

"I didn't think it was possible to miss anyone so acutely, Angela. When Booth is out of town, I miss him terribly, and can't sleep well, but Christine being gone has been even worse, which I would never have believed if I hadn't experienced it. Rationally, I know that time can't slow down, but during the past week, it certainly feels like it has!" Brennan replied.

"Angie, Dr. B, no news is good news. I know they discourage the kids from using their cell phones, but if anything serious had gone wrong, I'm sure we would have heard from them or the camp," Jack Hodgins reassured them.

Booth nudged Hodgins surreptitiously. "You girls need another beer?" he asked.

Hodgins stacked their dessert plates and headed for the kitchen. As the door swung shut behind them, he turned to Booth. "Why'd you poke me in the ribs?"

Booth grinned at him. "I can't say this to Bones, but Christine hoped and fought so hard to go to camp, she wouldn't let us know if anything was wrong under any circumstances. Wild horses couldn't drag her home early."

Hodgins returned his smile, "Yes, I think you're right. I've never seen Michael so excited as when Christine told him she was allowed to go to camp this summer with him. Our kids are really growing up. Last fall he didn't want to go to Cub Scout camp overnight."

"Christine will go anywhere anytime on any adventure she can find. A lot like her mother. Brennan thinks nothing of trekking off to Mapachukapoo to look at dusty old bones, but she takes an entirely different view of things when her daughter shows the same spirit. The next few years are gonna be hard on Bones, and me too. Christine is spreading her wings, and no amount of motherly concern is going to slow her down, I suspect. I miss her like the dickens too, but I'm glad the kids got to share this experience."

The men returned to the spacious family room with ice cold bottles of beer and a huge tub of popcorn for the movie the two couples had planned to watch. Booth put his arm around Brennan as Hodgins dimmed the lights and kissed her cheek, "Christine will be home soon, Bones. I'm sure she's doing fine."


	9. Chapter 9 All's Well That Ends Well

Chapter 9 All's Well That Ends Well

Thanks to being young and receiving excellent care, Christine found that her ankle was back to normal after her night in the infirmary and hopping around Michael's classroom on crutches the following day. She returned to her spelunking sessions after missing one day, and was able to crawl through the next cave her group hiked to. With the carefree spirit of childhood, she shook off her injury and went back to relishing every new experience the Naval Academy camp had to offer. She and Michael had great fun making plans over breakfast and later comparing notes on their sessions each evening. By the second Wednesday of camp, they'd both nonchalantly shoved their caving mishap to the back corner of their brains.

Christine had dutifully mailed a postcard during the first few days of camp before her fall, telling her parents she was fine and having a great time. But once she got into the swing of spelunking, the remaining postcards remained tucked away in her duffle bag, forgotten in the rush of activities which kept her happily occupied from sunrise until the crickets began to sing.

Michael Vincent was blissfully buried in newly-acquired insect knowledge and 'bug business' as his counselor jokingly called their experiments. In keeping with their hope of cultivating future military and government talent, the camp sponsors had included some rudimentary particulate gathering exercises in the second weekend's camp curriculum. Michael was gleeful, since he knew a bit about these procedures from watching his father and listening to his parents' sanitized dinner discussions. Angela refused to talk about the gory details at home, but she found Jack's discoveries intriguing nonetheless, and as long as he omitted the goupy parts, he was free to enlighten their son about the clues he teased from mass spectrometer data and chemical analyses. He recounted to Christine the particulars of proper particulate gathering protocol over supper Thursday night.

"Gosh, Michael, I think I like my mom's bones better than your bugs. They are complicated to remember, but at least they are clean and dry and won't crawl up your sleeve or down your glove."

"But the evidence can tell you so much about where the eggs were laid, when the insects hatched, where they build their pupae cases, and lots more information!" he enthused over a bowl of chocolate chip ice cream.

"The bones don't remind me of our dessert either," Christine observed wryly. "Not sure I could eat that after the day you describe, Michael."

Christine's group was taken on an all-day caving field trip on Saturday. By the time she returned and met Michael for supper, she couldn't talk fast enough to relate all the exciting things they'd seen and done.

"Hey, Chris, slow down and breathe. You're talking so much you're going to hyperventilate and pass out in the chow line. We've got all evening to talk. The particulate hike to the meadow today was awesome! I found some larvae under a pile of dead leaves, some wood chips inside a tree trunk, some slate and limestone chips under a fallen log, and all sorts of other great stuff to analyze. I wish you could have come so I could show you!"

"I'm planning to defeat you in a few chess matches, so we need time for that!" Christine retorted.

"Oh, I don't know about that, I've gotten pretty good at chess lately!" Michael challenged her.

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The third week of camp seemed to fly by in a blurr of preparations for the camp demonstrations the youngsters would put on Saturday morning. Their families were due to arrive Friday evening, if desired, to have a campfire supper with their children, or early Saturday before the exhibitition. Each session of campers were to present a discussion of what they had learned in their respective areas of discovery: spelunking, entomology, or conservation. Then they would break into groups, taking their parents on a short hike to the areas they'd been exploring, and demonstrate the skills they'd learned. A picnic lunch was planned. Once the demonstrations were concluded at 4:30 pm. the campers and families would reassemble at the dining hall to eat a hearty supper of campfire stew the conservation group had prepared. Their endeavors had included practicing 'leave no trace' wilderness camping methods. After dinner and cleanup, the evening would conclude with a campfire presentation of competitive games between the campers and their parents. This included a special award presentation, but none of the campers had been informed of this.

Booth and Brennan arrived Saturday morning after wrapping up a case Friday night. Angela and Hodgins came up Saturday as well, since Billy Gibbons showed up unannounced Friday evening for a charity concert in D.C. and wanted to come along to see his grandson's achievements. Parker was hoping to surprise Christine, but couldn't come until noon. The reunion between the Booths and the Hodgins generations involved comments about growing a foot in less than a month, and questions regarding the pungently musty odor of Michael Vincent's socks. He'd kept his tent tidy by stuffing everything into his backpack, damp, dry, or otherwise. Angela dispatched him back to his tent to change from tennis shoes to Chacos and lose the socks. She suspected she shouldn't relish the prospect of doing laundry when they returned home that night. Jack advised her to take a laissez-faire approach to the problem and let Michael Vincent do his own laundry.

"But, Hodgie, that isn't fair to Guadalupe, because she'll feel obligated to re-wash it all on Monday and Michael knows that," Angela reminded him.

"We'll just tell her she can't rescue him this time!" Jack declared. "He let his clothing get stinky; he can de-odorize it himself! That's a practical chemistry lesson!"

"Yeah, and he'll ruin all his clothes with Chlorox spots."

Billy had heard enough. "Angie, Jack, you compromise. Guadalupe can supervise, Michael can do the work!"

Brennan didn't say much but gave her daughter a long hug. Booth gathered both his girls in his arms and squeezed them tightly, planting kisses on both auburn heads.

"Mom, Dad, you're smooshing me; I can't breathe! Gimme some room, please!" Christine gasped.

"Sorry, honey, it's been a really long three weeks for your dear ol' Mom and Dad!" Booth exclaimed. "Seems like you'd been gone way longer than you actually were."

"Yes, Christine, while I know it is scientifically impossible, I felt several times while you were gone, that time had come to a complete standstill," Brennan remarked to her daughter.

"Wow, Mom, around here, the time just flew by. Seems like we just got here yesterday!" Christine told her mother.

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Several hours later, the campers and their families were gathered around a large campfire, seated on the grass, rocks, camp stools, or benches from the dining hall.

The camp director Captain Sowell waited for silence, then addressed the crowd.

"We've enjoyed hosting your children these past three weeks. We hope they had fun and learned some science along the way."

His voice was drowned out by whoops and cheers from the campers. Once they had quieted down, he continued speaking,

"Each year, we select one camper who personifies the spirit of self-reliance, initiative, self-sufficiency, and ingenuity that we try to foster here. This year, our Resourcefulness Award goes to a pair of campers who showed unusual presence of mind and level-headedness during an unexpected event, and solved a problem on their own without any intervention from the counselors or camp staff."

The kids were looking at each other with puzzled expressions, wondering who had done something to earn an award they'd never heard of.

"Michael Vincent Hodgins and Christine Brennan- Booth, will you please come forward?"

Michael and Christine stared at each other in confusion. "What did we do?" they asked in unison.

"During your free-time hike the first Thursday afternoon, Christine's sandal strap got caught in a rock crevice and you couldn't free your foot, remember? You and Michael worked together to solve the problem and he helped you back to camp. You handled your sprained ankle without complaining, and Michael figured out how to free your foot. Not every ten-year old could have taken care of that situation without adult assistance, but you two worked together and did a fine job of devising a solution to your dilemma."

"What happened?" Angela, Hodgins, Booth and Brennan all asked at once.

Captain Sowell smiled. "Christine and Michael went for a hike, and her sandal strap was snagged, as I said. She remembered she had a multi-tool in her daypack, which Michael used to cut the strap and free her foot. They used their headlamps to illuminate the injury. If they hadn't remembered to check their day packs for these tools before they left their tents, they wouldn't have been able to help themselves."

"My dad was the one who gave it to me, showed me how to use it, and made me practice," Christine exclaimed. "I think you better give him the award."

After the children were each presented with a plastic lightbulb flashlight as a trophy, the crowd applauded and the demonstration came to an end. The families began dispersing to collect campers' belongings and go home.

Christine and Michael walked toward their parents, and mumbled to each other, "Now we're gonna get it."

Brennan and Hodgins each looked at their children intently. "Where exactly was this rock crevice that ensnared your Chaco strap?" Jack asked his son.

"In a cave," Michael answered quietly.

"Christine Angela, what possessed you to think it was a good idea to take your friend into a cave by yourselves?" Brennan demanded of her daughter.

"Mom, we only went just inside the entrance. There was a stalactite Michael saw in a picture I took and he wanted to examine its texture and I knew it was very close to the opening. We told the counselors we were going on a hike and got back before they said."

And whose idea was it to enter this cave in the first place?" Angela asked her son knowingly.

"Mine," muttered Michael.

"Did you happen to tell the counselor you were hiking to a cave?" Booth asked the pair.

"Noooo," they admitted.

Captain Sowell came over and interrupted at this point. Dr. Hodgins, Dr. Brennan, Agent Booth, Mrs. Montenegro-Hodgins, I know it seems like your kids acted impetuously, and I'll grant you I wish they had told us where they were planning to go. But I don't know of very many ten-year olds who could think for themselves in a situation like that and not panic. They remained calm and collected enough to use the multi-tool, cut the strap, free her ankle, and make their way back to camp without adult help. Heck, I know a few adults who'd be too freaked out to come up with that solution."

"You have a point, Captain Sowell. Our daughter has been raised to think rationally for herself, and I believe the Hodgins have instilled similar logical skills in their son. Sometimes people find themselves in difficult situations and have to work in concert with one another to get themselves out of a bind. It seems our children accomplished this during your camp session," Brennan said warmly, sharing a meaningful gaze with Jack Hodgins. "We appreciate your recognizing them, but I think they learned a few additional lessons from this experience, like the importance of letting people know where they are goingl"

"And you are the poster child for always remembering to do that, Bones," Booth reminded his wife under his breath.

Temperance Brennan's face reddened slightly as she glared at her husband. Christine looked from her mom to her dad in confusion.

Angela looked at her son sternly and chided him, "When are you going to stop getting Christine into trouble by convincing her to do what you want?"

"Angie, the kids are both safe and they'll never forget this camp session, will you guys?" Hodgins shushed his wife. "The fact that they stayed by the entrance made all the difference."

"Oh, Hodgie!" Angela buried her face in her husband's shoulder and sniffled audibly.

"Christine, I did observe that your Chaco straps weren't the same length," Booth told his daughter.

"Yes, honey, I wondered why you were favoring your ankle ever so slightly; but I am very glad that the only thing you left in that cave was a few inches of sandal strap," Brennan added. She gave Booth a very significant look, squeezed his hand tightly, and planted a kiss firmly on his lips. He wrapped her in an intense hug. The four adults looked at each other in silence.

"Wonder what that was all about?" Michael muttered to Christine quietly.

"No clue," she responded. "I think we're better off not asking, don't you?"

"You got that right!" he answered emphatically.

Once he observed that the children had stopped whispering to each other, Booth spoke up. "Okay, guys, let's go get your gear and have dinner together in town at that restaurant on Antietam Blvd. before we head back to D.C." he suggested.

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That night, when their adventurous children had been bathed, hugged, kissed, and tucked into bed, both couples climbed into bed, gazed at each other, shared a heart-felt embrace, and said together, "If our children only knew what horrid memories that brought back!"

 **The End**

 **A/N: I considered getting the kids into a much more serious situation, but I prefer happy stories and that would have freaked Brennan out for good, and Christine would never have been allowed out of her bedroom again until she reached adulthood!**


	10. Chapter 10 Alternate Ending

Chapter 10 Mom and Dad Knew After All (alternate ending)

 **A/N: This is an alternate ending for JSBonesLover. Her review included comments about a slight variation in the plot which actually matches my original story idea. I was given a different suggestion by another reader/reviewer which I adopted, since she was kind enough to offer her opinion and ideas. But since JSBonesLover's reaction to this story ending was identical to my own initial story outline, I decided to add a second slightly different ending, reflecting her viewpoint.**

Thanks to being young and receiving excellent care, Christine found that her ankle was back to normal after her night in the infirmary and hopping around Michael's classroom on crutches the following day. She returned to her spelunking sessions after missing one day, and was able to crawl through the next cave her group hiked to. With the carefree spirit of childhood, she shook off her injury and went back to relishing every new experience the Naval Academy camp had to offer. She and Michael had great fun making plans over breakfast and later comparing notes on their sessions each evening. By the second Wednesday of camp, they'd both nonchalantly shoved their caving mishap to the back corner of their brains.

Christine had dutifully mailed a postcard during the first few days of camp before her fall, telling her parents she was fine and having a great time. But once she got into the swing of spelunking, the remaining postcards remained tucked away in her duffle bag, forgotten in the rush of activities which kept her happily occupied from sunrise until the crickets began to sing.

Michael Vincent was blissfully buried in newly-acquired insect knowledge and 'bug business' as his counselor jokingly called their experiments. In keeping with their hope of cultivating future military and government talent, the camp sponsors had included some rudimentary particulate gathering exercises in the second weekend's camp curriculum. Michael was gleeful, since he knew a bit about these procedures from watching his father and listening to his parents' sanitized dinner discussions. Angela refused to talk about the gory details at home, but she found Jack's discoveries intriguing nonetheless, and as long as he omitted the goupy parts, he was free to enlighten their son about the clues he teased from mass spectrometer data and chemical analyses. He recounted to Christine the particulars of proper particulate gathering protocol over supper Thursday night.

"Gosh, Michael, I think I like my mom's bones better than your bugs. They are complicated to remember, but at least they are clean and dry and won't crawl up your sleeve or down your glove."

"But the evidence can tell you so much about where the eggs were laid, when the insects hatched, where they build their pupae cases, and lots more information!" he enthused over a bowl of chocolate chip ice cream.

"The bones don't remind me of our dessert either," Christine observed wryly. "Not sure I could eat that after the day you describe, Michael."

Christine's group was taken on an all-day caving field trip on Saturday. By the time she returned and met Michael for supper, she couldn't talk fast enough to relate all the exciting things they'd seen and done.

"Hey, Chris, slow down and breathe. You're talking so much you're going to hyperventilate and pass out in the chow line. We've got all evening to talk. The particulate hike to the meadow today was awesome! I found some larvae under a pile of dead leaves, some wood chips inside a tree trunk, some slate and limestone chips under a fallen log, and all sorts of other great stuff to analyze. I wish you could have come so I could show you!"

"I'm planning to defeat you in a few chess matches, so we need time for that!" Christine retorted.

"Oh, I don't know about that, I've gotten pretty good at chess lately!" Michael challenged her.

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The third week of camp seemed to fly by in a blur of preparations for the camp demonstrations the youngsters would put on Saturday morning. Their families were due to arrive Friday evening, if desired, to have a campfire supper with their children, or early Saturday before the exhibitition. Each session of campers were to present a discussion of what they had learned in their respective areas of discovery: spelunking, entomology, or conservation. Then they would break into groups, taking their parents on a short hike to the areas they'd been exploring, and demonstrate the skills they'd learned. A picnic lunch was planned. Once the demonstrations were concluded at 4:30 pm. the campers and families would reassemble at the dining hall to eat a hearty supper of campfire stew the conservation group had prepared. Their endeavors had included practicing 'leave no trace' wilderness camping methods. After dinner and cleanup, the evening would conclude with a campfire presentation of competitive games between the campers and their parents. This included a special award presentation, but none of the campers had been informed of this.

Booth and Brennan arrived Saturday morning after wrapping up a case Friday night. Angela and Hodgins came up Saturday as well, since Billy Gibbons showed up unannounced Friday evening for a charity concert in D.C. and wanted to come along to see his grandson's achievements. Parker was hoping to surprise Christine, but couldn't come until noon.

Michael galloped toward his parents and nearly knocked both of them over, stopping dead in his tracks when he spotted Billy.

"Grandpa! I didn't know you were coming! This is great!"

"Geez, Michael, don't knock your mom down, son, take it easy," Hodgins gasped.

After hugs and kisses all around, the Hodgins family began to notice the pungently musty odor of Michael Vincent's socks. In typical boy fashion, he'd kept his tent tidy by stuffing everything into his backpack, damp, dry, or otherwise.

"Good Lord, boy, what's wrong with your feet? Was the camp so short of water that you never washed them?" Billy asked his grandson pointedly.

Angela quickly sent him back to his tent to change from tennis shoes to Chacos and lose the socks. Her stomach lurched at the prospect of washing Michael's camp clothes when they returned home that night. Jack advised her to take a laissez-faire approach to the problem and let Michael Vincent do his own laundry.

"But, Hodgie, that isn't fair to Guadalupe, because she'll feel obligated to re-wash it all on Monday and Michael knows that," Angela reminded him.

"We'll just tell her she can't rescue him this time!" Jack declared. "He let his clothing get stinky; he can de-odorize it himself! That's a practical chemistry lesson he's not likely to forget!"

"Yeah, and he'll ruin all his clothes with Chlorox spots."

Billy had heard enough. "Angie, Jack, you gotta compromise. Guadalupe can supervise, Michael can do the work!"

Christine walked toward her parents with the biggest smile on her face either of them had ever seen; even wider than when they finally got her a dog.

Brennan didn't say much but gave her daughter a long hug. She had noticed that, unlike Michael, Christine didn't run and was favoring her left ankle ever so slightly when she walked. Booth gathered both his girls in his arms and squeezed them tightly, planting kisses on both auburn heads.

"Mom, Dad, you're smooshing me; I can't breathe! Gimme some room, please!" Christine gasped.

"Sorry, honey, it's been a really long three weeks for your dear ol' Mom and Dad!" Booth exclaimed. "Seems like you'd been gone way longer than you actually were."

"Yes, Christine, while I know it is scientifically impossible, I felt several times while you were gone, that time had come to a complete standstill," Brennan remarked to her daughter.

"Wow, Mom, around here, the time just flew by. Seems like we just got here yesterday!" Christine told her mother.

While Christine was talking to her mother, Booth observed that the straps of her sandals were of different lengths, and the end of the shorter one was quite ragged. He decided not to mention it, and see what transpired as the day wore on.

While Christine was describing to Angela how the dining hall prepared fresh strawberry shortcake, Brennan turned to Booth and spoke so softly only he heard her.

"Christine has sustained a sprained ankle. Her gait is slightly altered and she's being very careful with it. I daresay she required treatment at the medical"

"Did you notice her Chaco straps are different lengths? Booth asked her. "One of them looks like it was chewed off. Something is amiss, but let's just see what transpires. Maybe she'll tell us herself."

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Several hours later, the campers and their families were gathered around a large campfire, seated on the grass, rocks, camp stools, or benches from the dining hall.

The camp director Captain Sowell waited for silence, then addressed the crowd.

"We've enjoyed hosting your children these past three weeks. We hope they had fun and learned some science along the way."

His voice was drowned out by whoops and cheers from the campers. Once they had quieted down, he continued speaking,

"Each year, we select one camper who personifies the spirit of self-reliance, initiative, self-sufficiency, and ingenuity that we try to foster here. This year, our Resourcefulness Award goes to a pair of campers who showed unusual presence of mind and level-headedness during an unexpected event, and solved a problem on their own without any intervention from the counselors or camp staff."

All the campers were looking at each other with puzzled expressions, wondering who had done something to earn an award they'd never heard of.

"Michael Vincent Hodgins and Christine Brennan- Booth, will you please come forward?"

Hodgins asked, "What do you suppose could have happened?"

Booth smiled and said, "Why don't you ask Bones?"

Angela turned and said "Bren-?"

Brennan replied, "I can tell from Christine's gait that she's sprained her left ankle somehow, and I surmise from the camp director's comments that Michael Vincent must have helped Christine in some way. Let's see what the director says next."

Angela looked at the other three adults, "I wonder what sort of mischief this pair got into."

Michael and Christine stared at each other in confusion. "What did we do to win an award?" they asked in unison.

Captain Sowell smiled and explained, "During the Thursday afternoon free period of the first week,"Christine and Michael went for a hike together. Christine's sandal strap was snagged and caught in a rock crevice and she couldn't free her foot. She and Michael worked together to solve the problem. She remembered she had a multi-tool in her daypack, which Michael used to cut the strap and free her foot. He wrapped it in an elastic bandage from her first aid kit and helped her walk back to camp. They used their headlamps to illuminate the injury. If they hadn't remem-bered to check their day packs for these tools before they left their tents, they wouldn't have been able to help themselves. Christine handled your sprained ankle without complaining, and Michael figured out how to free her foot. Not every ten-year old could have taken care of that situation without adult assistance, but these two worked together and did a fine job of devising a solution to their dilemma."

"My dad was the one who gave it to me, showed me how to use it, and made me practice," Christine exclaimed. "I think you better give him the award."

After the children were each presented with a plastic lightbulb flashlight as a trophy, the crowd applauded and the demonstration came to an end. The families began dispersing to collect campers' belongings and go home.

Christine and Michael walked toward their parents, and mumbled to each other, "Now we're gonna get it."

She whispered, "I bet my mom already knows from looking at my foot. She was staring at me like one of her skeletons earlier. No doubt my dad noticed my Chaco strap was cut too."

He responded quietly, "Yeah, well, my dad will figure out what cave it was by the dust on my socks. They already yelled at me about my stinky feet."

Brennan and Hodgins each looked at their children intently. "Where exactly was this rock crevice that ensnared your Chaco strap?" Jack asked his son.

"In a cave," Michael answered quietly.

"Christine Angela, what possessed you to think it was a good idea to take your friend into a cave by yourselves?" Brennan demanded of her daughter.

"Mom, we only went just inside the entrance. There was a stalactite Michael saw in a picture I took and he wanted to examine its texture and I knew it was very close to the opening. We told the counselors we were going on a hike and got back before they said."

And whose idea was it to enter this cave in the first place?" Angela asked her son knowingly.

"Mine," muttered Michael.

"Did you happen to tell the counselor you were hiking to a cave?" Booth asked the pair.

"Noooo," they admitted.

Captain Sowell came over and interrupted at this point. Dr. Hodgins, Dr. Brennan, Agent Booth, Mrs. Montenegro-Hodgins, I know it seems like your kids acted impetuously, and I'll grant you I wish they had told us where they were planning to go. But I don't know of very many ten-year olds who could think for themselves in a situation like that and not panic. They remained calm and collected enough to use the multi-tool, cut the strap, free her ankle, and make their way back to camp without adult help. Heck, I know a few adults who'd be too freaked out to come up with that solution."

"You have a point, Captain Sowell. Our daughter has been raised to think rationally for herself, and I believe the Hodgins have instilled similar logical skills in their son. Sometimes people find themselves in difficult situations and have to work in concert with one another to get themselves out of a bind. It seems our children accomplished this during your camp session," Brennan said warmly, sharing a meaningful gaze with Jack Hodgins. "We appreciate your recognizing them, but I think they learned a few additional lessons from this experience, like the importance of letting people know where they are going."

"And you are the poster child for always remembering to do that, Bones," Booth reminded his wife under his breath.

Temperance Brennan's face reddened slightly as she glared at her husband. Christine looked from her mom to her dad in confusion.

Angela looked at her son sternly and chided him, "When are you going to stop getting Christine into trouble by convincing her to do what you want?"

"Angie, the kids are both safe and they'll never forget this camp session, will you guys?" Hodgins shushed his wife. "The fact that they stayed by the entrance made all the difference."

"Oh, Hodgie!" Angela buried her face in her husband's shoulder and sniffled audibly.

"Christine, I did observe that your Chaco straps weren't the same length," Booth told his daughter.

"Yes, honey, I wondered why you were favoring your ankle ever so slightly; but I am very glad that the only thing you left in that cave was a few inches of sandal strap," Brennan added. She gave Booth a very significant look, squeezed his hand tightly, and planted a kiss firmly on his lips. He wrapped her in an intense hug. The four adults looked at each other in silence.

"Wonder what that was all about?" Michael muttered to Christine quietly.

"No clue," she responded. "I think we're better off not asking, don't you?"

"You got that right!" he answered emphatically.

Once he observed that the children had stopped whispering to each other, Booth spoke up. "Okay, guys, let's go get your gear and have dinner together in town at that restaurant on Antietam Blvd. before we head back to D.C." he suggested.

bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb

That night, when their adventurous children had been bathed, hugged, kissed, and tucked into bed, both couples climbed into bed, gazed at each other, shared a heart-felt embrace, and said together, "If our children only knew what horrid memories that brought back!"

 **The End**

 **A/N: I considered putting the kids into a scarier situation, but they are only 10 and the U.S. Navy wouldn't endanger kids with enormously dangerous caves.**


End file.
